1. Cats’ whiskers are highly sensitive touch receptors. This sensitivity is a result of billions of nerve endings that send information to the cat's brain almost instantly They detect subtle changes in the air and objects nearby, guiding cats when they move in the dark.

2. When cats purr, the sound can be soothing to both the cat and the people around them. Research shows that purring may have healing effects and reduce pain.

3. The cat’s tail acts as a counterbalance to help them climb and perch on narrow surfaces. The inner ear of a cat, particularly the semicircular canals, plays a vital role in maintaining balance while its tail stabilizes its body during movements.

4. There are up to 75 breeds of domesticated cats (house cats). In addition there are there are 37 recognized species of wild (non-domesticated) cats in the family Felidae, according to scientists. These include: Small wild cats (e.g., black-footed cat, rusty-spotted cat, sand cat, kodkod), Medium-sized cats (e.g., lynx species, caracal, serval, ocelot), and Large cats (e.g., lion, tiger, leopard, jaguar, snow leopard, clouded leopard, cheetah).

5. Humans didn’t intentionally domesticate cats the way they did dogs, wheat, or cattle. Instead, cat domestication was a mutualistic, self-driven process that began around 12,000 years ago at the end of the last ice age when humans began to farm the land to raise grain (especially). Humans had to store their grain, and that attracted rats and mice. Cats, at first wild, came to hunt and eat the mice and rats. The cats wanted to stay near the humans because it benefited them (the cats). It was also beneficial to humans who didn't want their grain eaten. This was probably the first symbiotic relationship in world history!

6. The earliest domestication of cats occurred in the Near East (Fertile Crescent), and Mesopotamia. The first domesticated cats developed from the Near Eastern wildcat (Felis lybica lybica) which was the sole ancestor of all the domestic cats we have today.

7. By about 4,000 BCE, cats were likely introduced to Egypt from the Levant, then later venerated (worshiped), mummified, and protected by law. In Egypt cats were sacred. It was a serious offense to kill a cat in Egypt.